1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a novel process for producing processed minced meat foods. More particularly, it relates to a process for producing processed minced meat products such as hamburgers, and the like whose characteristic heterogeneous feel does not suffer deterioration over time, and which also do not suffer shape deformation and reduction in volume because of heat shrinkage.
2. Description of the Background
One major characteristic of the feel upon the eating of processed meat products consisting mainly of minced meat such as hamburger lies in the heterogeneous feel or so-called "feeling of meat grains". In general, such minced meat products are typical of high caloric foods since meat is used therein as a main raw material. Upon cooking, they tend to shrink because of so-called "roast-shrinkage" which results in deformation of the meat shape, reduction in volume of the meat, and the like.
One method for reducing the caloric value of processed minced meat foods is to replace a portion of the minced meat with a low caloric foodstuff such as konjak jelly. Konjak jelly is a traditional food prepared from swollen konjak mannan, a component present in devil's-tongue, by the addition of an alkaline substance, such as lime milk, or the like to the konjak mannan followed by heat gelation. Upon eating it gives a characteristic feeling based on its high elasticity.
In known methods of producing processed meat foods, a hydrated product of konjak mannan is mixed with a foodstuff such as minced meat, or the like, and then is subjected to gelation before or after the mixing. However, when konjak mannan is mixed with processed minced meat foods in this manner, the feeling of the products upon eating is seriously impaired by the viscoelasticity characteristic of konjak, and the desirable heterogeneous texture based on the feeling of meat grains is very difficult to obtain.
Accordingly, when konjak mannan gel is used to reduce the caloric value of a meat product or to alleviate "roast shrinkage," it is difficult to obtain processed minced meat foods which exhibit the desired heterogeneous feeling upon eating. A need therefore continues to exist for minced meat products which exhibit a desired heterogenous feel upon eating.